Apparatus for controlling gas flow



c: H. wElsKoPF 1,941,287

APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING GAS FLOW Filed Aug. 17, 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet l Dec. 26, 1933.

INVENTUR.

v bar/e5 WQ/lf/fo/of BY M ATTO/NEW Dec. 26, 1933. c. H. wr-:lsKoPF APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING GAS FLOW Filed Aug. 17, 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 [Nl/ENTOR. Hg Char/e5 We/s/rgof BY M t Ma/ M l A TTORNEY Dec. 26, 1933. C. H. WElSKOPF 1,941,287

APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING GAS FLOW 4 SheeLS-Slleel 5 lill //b Filed Aug. 17, 1929 m ilm //b #ai I N V EN TOR A TTORNEY Dec. ze, 1933..l

C. H. WEISKOPF APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING GAS FLOW 4 sheets-sheet 4 I( Zb Filed Aug. 17, 1929 INVENTOR, af/ef Wcv's/fa/of BY M1 A T TORNE Y5 Patented Dec. 26, 1933 UNITED STATES TENr-OFEICE j Y APPARATUS Fon v1,941,237V CoN'rRoLLrNooA's FLOW o Charles H. Weiskopf, Hawthornaalifa.assigner K to International kPrecipitation Company, Los,

o Angeles', Calif.,` a corporation oi .Cy `alirfornia v .Y Y o o vVpplication August `'17, 1323.1 'Serial No. 386,723/ y tclaim's. '(01. 13 7;75f)'1 This invention relates tomeans for controlling the ow of gas and particularly for lequalizing or controlling the distribution of gas flow in a plurality of gas passage means to which the gas is supplied from la common source and 'through which the gas ows in parallel. The invention is particularly adapted vfor use in controlling the distribution of gas flow through aplurality of electrical preeipitator units connected for parallel gas fiow, but may also be used in other'cases Ywhere control or distribution of ojw o f gas in one or more flue chambers 'or' other passages` is required.v Y

The principal. object of the invention is to provide a gas controllingor distributing device which is simple in operation and requires a relatively small amount of power to'operate the same, which is adapted to provide any desired degree of restriction to gas novatand which creates a minimum disturbance in thenormal stream line iiow of the gas.

The Vapparatus comprises .essentially two sets of elongated members, the membersof each set beingspaced apart and parallel .to one another ina common vertical plane, constituting what may be termed a -curtain and the two curtains or sets of elongated members being disposed in parallel planes spaced somewhat apart,` with the members of the two sets staggered with respect to one another, and means for moving the two l n apparatusmounted at the inlet of a flue, showing curtains orsets of Yelongated members relatively toward or away from one another so'as 'to vary the resistance to gas ow therethrough, while keeping the planes of the curtains parallel to one another at all positionsof adjustment, soas to maintain substantially equal resistance to gas now over the entire area of the curtains. The

distance between the elongated members of each curtain may be substantially equal to, or somewhat greater or less than, the distance .between the two curtains. The relative movement of the two curtains is such that relative movement of the respective elongated members occurs in planes perpendicular to the planes of the curtains and parallel to said elongated members, thus maintainingthe staggered relationship of thelmem# bers ci therespective curtains. Both the curtains may be moved, or if desired only one of the cur- Y tains may bev moved toward or away from the other curtain. With such a construction, 'when the curtains are relativelyfar apart-a practically free flow of gas between the elongated members of each curtain is permitted, but as the curtains are moved closeriand closer togetherthe elongated members of each curtain .are'brought more Fig. 2,

Fig-'55 Fig. '7 is an elevation o f the parts shown in and more closely into'register with the spaces yin the other curtain so as to increasingly'restrict the ow of gas through such spaces..

vThe eiongat'ed'members are preferably disposed vertically, and an advantageous Vmeans of moving thesame relatively toward or from one another comprises lever means connected to the two cur- :tains and mounted for rotation about a vhorizontal'axis intermediate'the planes of the two'curtainsfand means for swinging said lever means about saidaxis. 'When said lever means are disposed horizontally, the two curtains' are at a max- V'of s aidmejmbers. A particular advantagel of this arrangement is: that the weight of one curtain is substantially counterbaian'ced by the weight o f the other, and ajminimum Yamount of'power is thereforerequired for operation thereof. A The accompanying drawings illustrate a pre- `ferred embodiment of my invention and certain modifications thereof; and referring thereto:v

Fig. 1Y is a""front" elevation'oi' Vthe controlling also `a'portion oij a similar apparatus at the inlet of an adjacent parallel ilue.

. Fig.'2 is va verticalsection on', .2f-2 in Fig;l 3 is ahorizontal section on line 3-3 in 'a section on 1in@ innig. 2,'show- Fig. l is ing part of the operating mechanism and clamp'- ing or holding meansr for the apparatus.

the last two figures, taken from theleft side 'of Fig. 5.

Figs. 8 and f 9 are partial horizontal sections showing mcdied forms ofelongated members.'v

Y Fig. `10-is a view similar to Fig. 5, showing a construction in In Figs. 1, 2 and`3, side walls 1, bottoml wall y2, and Vtop wall 3 are shown as defining a gas Whichonly one of the curtains is movabla y to divide a portion thereof` into two parallel lues 5 and 6, while the portion 7 in advance of said intermediate wall constitutes a common flue or header from which gas is supplied to the parallel fiues 5 and 6. The lues 5 and 6 may be considered as leading to, or forming a part of, parallel electrical precipitator units, or they may be for any other purpose. The direction of gas flow is as indicated by the arrows A in Figs. 2 and 3. A gas controlling or distributing device 10 according to this invention extends across be- Vcontrolling or distributing means comprises a curtain 10a consisting of a plurality of vertical elongated members, such as tubes or pipes 11a, spaced from one another and hanging vertically in a common vertical plane, anda curtain 10b also consisting of a plurality of elongated members 11b spaced from one another and hanging vertically in a common vertical plane, the said curtains being parallel to one another and the curtain 10b being normally disposed somewhat beyond the curtainlca in the direction of gas flow. The elongated members of the respective curtains may be connected together at intervals throughout their height by transverse bars 12a and 12b respectively, and may be further connected together and braced by means of diagonal bars or strips 13a and 13b respectively, said diagonal bars being connected to the transverse ybars by means of brackets 14a and 14h.V The ends of the two curtains are also preferably linked together atintervals throughout their height as by means of link members 15 pivotally connected to the elongated members or to the transverse bars 12a and 12b in any suitable manner.

The means for effecting relative movementof the curtains toward or away .from .one another may comprise one or more. lever means such as shown at 17, 178 and 19 in Fig. 1, each comprising, as shown more particularly in Figs. 5, 6, and 7, a lever arm 21a pivotaly connected to the upper end of one of the elongated `members 11a. of curtain 10a, anda lever arm 2lb pivotally vconnected to the upper end of one of the elongated members llb of the other curtain. Said two lever arms are securedto acommon shaft 22 rotatably supported in a bearing sleeve 23 supported by brackets 24 from a suitable supporting beam 25.y For the sake of convenience, the lever arms 21a and 2lb are shown as mounted at opposite ends of vsaid shaft. The connection of each lever arm to the elongated member of ,the corresponding curtain may be made by means f 'a connecting member" 26 whose lower portion is connected tothe upperA end of` they elongated -member as byY pins or. rivets 27 and whose upper end is pivotally connected to the lever arm by a pin or bolt 28. 1 f

Shaft 22 is also provided with an operating arm .30 which may as shown be formed integrally with one of thelever arms, such as 2lb. The outer end of arm 30 is connected by link members or straps 31 to a rod 32 which is slidably mounted in a sleeveA 33 extending through the top wall 3 and provided with packing means 34. The upper Vend of rod 32 is in turn connected through link means 35 and lever arm 36 to a common operating shaft 37, which extends across above all of the lever means 17, 18 and 19 and is operatively connected thereto in similar manner. Shaft 37 is in turn connected by lever arms 38 to a rod 39 whose other end is pivotally connected to a segment 41 pivotally mounted at 42 on a supporting member 43'. A lever arm 44 connected to said segment has .itsupper portion formed as a handle 45 for permitting manual operation thereof. The seg rment 41 may be held in any desired position by means of a clamping member 46 provided with a bolt 47 by means of which said clamping member may be drawn inwardly to clamp the upper edge of said segment between said clamping `member and the supporting member 43.

The lower ends of the two curtains may be maintained in proper alignment transversely of the passage by means of an I-beam 51 supported in vfixed position in any suitable manner. The lower ends of the elongated members of curtain 10a rest against the forward edge of the upper members striking the I-beam 56at the top oi the y opening when this curtain is raised as hereinafter described. The elongated members of the other curtain 10b, however, may extend upwardly somewhat higher than those of the first named curtain as shown for example at 57, for there is no upward movement of curtain 10b, but rather only a downward movement thereof, from the pom sition shown in the drawings, when the device is operated from open toward closed position. it will also be noted that certain of the elongated members directly beneath the several lever means .a

17, 18 and 19 are of somewhat less height than the remainder of said elongated members in order to avoid strikingl any parts of said lever means and the operating/mechanism associated therewith, during operation of the device.

It will be seen that with the two curtains in the relative positions shown in Figs. 2 and 3 and 4in full lines in Fig. 5, that is, with both lever Varms of the lever means in horizontal position, 'the two curtains are a maximum distance apart V and a minimum restriction or opposition is, therefore, ciered to flow of gas therethrough. If it is desired to increase the resistance to gas flow, the level` 44 is moved in a clockwise direction in Fig. 2 by means of handle 45, thus moving lever arms 21a and 2lb also in a clockwise direction and bringing the two curtains relatively towardjone another while raising curtain 13a and lowering curtain 10b. The other extreme position of the elongated members of the two cLu-tains, that is, the position of maximum resistance to gas ilow, is illustrated in dotted lines at 11a' and 11b' in Fig. 5. When in these positions, Vthe members 11a lie almost directly in the spaces between the members 11b of the other curtain,

thus leaving only a relatively small area of openings for passage of the gas. By adjusting the two curtains to diiferent positions between these two extremes, any desired adjustment or control may be obtained, and said curtains may be held link means l5 also serve to positively maintain` such parallel relation.

A particular feature of the construction is that in case dust or other suspended mattercarried by the gases should be deposited upon the elongated members or other parts of the curtains, such deposited material may be readily removed therefrom by moving lever 44 so as to cause the lower ends of members 10a to forcibly and repeatedly strike against the fixed bar 53, thus jarring the entire assembly and serving to loosen such material which then falls by gravity to the bottom of the passage.

Many modications may be made in the above described apparatus without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, the vertical elongated members of which the respective curtains are formed may consist or solid rods or` bars 61a and lbas shown in Fig. 8, the rounded construction of these bars whether solid or tubularserving to facilitate the passage of gas or fluid therebetween and reduce Aloss of pressure due to friction or turbulence. With a View to still further reducing such losses saidinernbers may be formed of hollow tubular members 62a and 621) of oval or velongated cross section, the .K elongation of the cross section thereof being in the direction of gas low and perpendicular to the planes of the respective curtains, so as to facilitate stream line flow of the gasbetween said members and still further reduce the disturbance in smooth flow of the gas. Y

Also, as shown in Fig. l0, one vof the curtains, such as 64e may be xed, while the other curtain 64b is movable toward or away from said first named curtain. In this case, certain of the elongated members 65a of the Yiixed curtain may be connected by members 67 to lfixed supporting brackets 68, while the elongated members 65h may be supported by members 69 from lever arm 7l secured to a shaft '72 rotatably mounted on said brackets 68 and provided with suitable loperating member in the same manner as the shaft 22 vin the form-of the invention first described. In this form of ythe invention, rotation of shaft 72 in a clockwise direction will cause curtain 64b to move downwardly and toward the iixed curtain so as to vary the resistance to Vgars flow in a manner similar to that above described.

I claim:

1. An apparatus for controlling gas flow comprising two curtains disposed in parallelY vertical. planes and each comprising a plurality of parallel elongated members rounded in crosssection and spaced somewhat apart, the elongated members of therespective curtains being staggered with respect to one another, and means for moving said curtains relatively toward or away from one another while keeping the planes thereof substantially parallel to one another in all positions of adjustment so as to vary the Vresistance to passage of gas therethrough while keeping such resistance substantially uniform over the entire area of thecurtains.

2. In combination with means defining Ya gas passage, an apparatus for controllingV flow of gas therethrough lcomprising two parallel vertical curtains extending substantially across the area of said gas passage and each comprising a plurality of elongated members spaced from one another, each of said curtain members being rounded in cross-section but elongated in a di- Vrection perpendicular totheplane of the curtain, the elongated members of each curtain being disposed opposite the spaces between the elongated members of the other curtain and being of sufficient width to appreciably obstruct said spaces when the two curtains are brought close together, and means for moving said curtains relatively toward or away from one another while keeping the planes of the respective curtains substantially parallel lto one another, so as to` vary the resistance to flow of gas in said passage while keeping such resistance substantially uniform over the entire area of said passage.

vv3. An apparatus for controlling gas flow comprising two parallel vertical curtains, each corn- .prising a plurality of parallel elongated members ment of the respective elongated members occurs Y in planes parallel to said elongated members and perpendicular to the planes of the curtains, and to cause said curtains to remain substantially vertical and parallel to one another in all positions of adjustment.4

4. An apparatus for controlling gas flow coml prising two parallel vertical curtains each comprising a plurality of vertically extending elongated members spaced from one another, and means for moving said curtains relatively toward and away from one another while keeping the same substantially vertical and parallel to one another, the elongated members of each curtain being disposed opposite the spaces between the elongated members of the other curtain and the relative movement of the elongated members being in vertical planes perpendicular to the planes of the curtains.

5. An apparatus for controlling gas flow cornprising two parallel vertical curtains, each comprising a plurality of vertical elongated members spaced from one another, the elongated members of each curtain being disposed opposite the spaces between the elongated members of the.

other curtain, lever means pivotally mounted l '7. An apparatus as set forth in claim 5 and comprising in addition, link means rconnecting said curtains together at positions materially below the position of said lever means, so as toA assist the action of rgravity in maintaining said curtains in parallel vertical planes atall positions of adjustment thereof. n CHARLES H. WEISKOPF. 

